I am always looking at Ebay and Craigslist to see whats out there. I ran across what appeared to be a really nice 85 Sierra in my Facebook feed that was for sale. I felt the asking price was above market so I ignored it.

Eventually it came up again listed at a lower price. I sent a request for more pics, and liked what I saw but I felt it was still above market. Recently it popped up again, and I asked for more pics and talked to the owner at length. I decided the only way to know for sure if it was really that nice was to go take a look.

Saturday I drove 3 hours to Lake Charles with an empty trailer. I spent an hour looking the truck over and talking with the owner. In the end he accepted an offer that I felt was fair. I handed him a stack on bills and loaded my new truck up.

The story as I know it is the truck was originally bought and spent most of its life in Arkansas. From what I know this is a good thing as they don't use salt or chemicals on the roads when it snows, and the state has dry climate. I can attest that this truck has a rust free undercarriage and no sign of rust repair, so I feel that is accurate.

I was told that a shop in Meridian, Georgia bought the truck from the original owner. It was blown apart and all the dings and bumps that had been aquired over the last 30 were smoothed out. The original GM bright red was sprayed over the entire truck. That was followed by a late model GM champagne color on the top and roof.

The suspension was modified with BellTech spindles and spring up front. A BellTech flip kit accompanied by a 1" block brought the rear down. A set of 22" Coys C57 wheels were bolted on to give add a contemporary twist to a classic style.

All new glass was installed with fresh rubber seals. The interior was refurbished with a new carpet, a replacement dash pad, and all of the plastic was dyed to match. The dash and doors received a billet over lay, and the door panels were refurbished too.

Now that I have shared the good, lets look at the bad. The paint has shrunk back, and needs a cut and buff. It was used as a shop truck for a brief period so has some scuffs in the bed area that need attention.

The motor runs strong, but its cold to start and needs a carb tune. Even though it had a premium rebuild all the gaskets need tightened or replaced. It leaks from top to bottom. The headers have mild leaks, and it has an occasional missfire. Fortunately it runs smooth once warmed up and pulls hard despite the factory high gears.

Over the next few moths I will give it a complete N2trux detail. Everything inside and out will be replaced, restored, or repainted as necessary. I have already contacted Derek Churchill at Precision Replacement Parts. I will be shipping the vent windows in for a complete refurbish and all of the window scrapers will be replaced as well.

I will post progress reports as I go. Stick around and share your thought. Meanwhile take a look at my other build threads found in my signature below.

I spent more time with my latest purchase last night. I had to borrow the battery to move my 77 back in her place of prominence. My wife and I took her for a drive, and she decided to give her a name besides "The 85". She is now known as "Scarlett" based on her color and Southern heritage.

I spent a lot of time analyzing what all she needs to be the Belle of the Ball again. I need time to research all the hard parts, so I'm going to start with pressure washing her from top to bottom so I can determine where all the leaks are. From there I'll be changing the fluids and resealing all the gaskets as I go.